South Africa vs New Zealand - (Source: X.com)
For the 24th match of T20 World Cup 2026, South Africa and New Zealand locked horns at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Both teams are fresh off a win and the winner of the ongoing match will put a foot in the super eight stage.
Aiden Markram and Mitchell Santner walked for the toss and eventually, the South Africa skipper won the coin flip and opted to field first. Markram cited dew a reason behind his decision.
Talking about the team changes, South Africa have made one change as Corbin Bosch returns in place of George Linde. For New Zealand, they named an unchanged XI courtesy of a 10-wicket win over UAE. Therefore, the Kiwis didn't felt the need to make any changes to their line-up.
South Africa vs New Zealand: Playing XIs
South Africa Playing XI : Aiden Markram (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Corbin Bosch, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Keshav Maharaj
New Zealand Playing XI : Tim Seifert, Finn Allen (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Jimmy Neesham, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Jacob Duffy
South Africa vs New Zealand: Captains Thoughts
Mitchell Santner (New Zealand captain): "That looks like a pretty good wicket. For us, it is runs on the board. Hopefully, there won't be much dew later on. We would have also elected to bowl first. It has been good. Throughout this tournament, there are no easy wins any more. Again, tonight, it is a massive game. If we win, we are kind of through. So that is how we are thinking."
Aiden Markram (South Africa Captain): "(On toss decision) We are going to bowl first. We have played one night game here so far. We thought that the wicket got better as the game progressed. Hopefully, the boys can bowl well up front and give us something that can be chased down."
"There was a slight dew the last time we played a night game here, but not heaps of dew. Can be a hit and miss sometimes. There was a little bit of dew last night," he added.
Why Did South Africa drop George Linde from the playing XI?
So far, Corbin Bosch has played a game in this tournament, the first one. However, he was dropped for the last game against Afghanistan, where Linde replaced him. However, the spinner was ineffective at the Narendra Modi Stadium, leaking 39 runs in three overs and picking just a solitary wicket.
The Proteas hardly registered a win against Afghanistan and lacked a genuine wicket-taker. Therefore, to not repeat their previous mistake, the Rainbow Nation have brought Bosch back into the playing XI, replacing Linde.
Talking about Bosch, he didn't get to bat against Canada, but picked up a wicket and registered the figures of 1/27 in his four overs.
